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Introduction to Integrated Pest Management (IPM). Key points of IPM. Integration Harmonious use of multiple methods to control single pests or pest complexes Pest An organism detrimental to humans, including: invertebrates, vertebrates, weeds, and pathogens Management
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Key points of IPM • Integration • Harmonious use of multiple methods to control single pests or pest complexes • Pest • An organism detrimental to humans, including: invertebrates, vertebrates, weeds, and pathogens • Management • Decisions based on ecological principles and economic and social considerations Kogan, M. 1998. INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Developments, Annual Review of Entomology. Vol. 43: 243-270.
Key points of IPM • IPM is a multidisciplinary endeavor • Agronomy (crop and soil science) • Entomology (insects: pests and beneficial) • Plant pathology (plant diseases) • Economics (decision-making) • Agricultural Engineering (machinery, grain handling, etc.) • Climatology (weather trends and effects) Kogan, M. 1998. INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Developments, Annual Review of Entomology. Vol. 43: 243-270.
History • ~2500 BC: The element sulfur was found to help control mite and insect populations • ~1500 AD to present: some plants found to generate insecticidal—and more recently—herbicidal compounds • Pyrethrum (pyrethrin - insecticidal) • The Neem tree (NEEM - insecticidal) • Bottlebrush plant, Callistemon sp. (herbicide Callisto)
History • Late 1800s: inorganic compounds used for insect and fungal organism control, including: • Paris green (copper acetoarsenate) • Bordeaux mix (copper sulfate and hydrated lime) • Lead arsenate • Creosote (coal tar derivative) • Sodium hypochlorite solutions (bleach)
History 1939 (dawn of the modern insecticide era): DDT recognized as an effective insect control Late 1940s (post WWII): the advent of “chemical” pesticides including 2,4-D 1948 Warfarin™ registered as a rodenticide (and later -in the early 1950s- as an anticoagulant in human medicine)
History • 1962: Silent Spring published • 1967: the term “IPM” first used
History 1970: the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was founded 1979: the Iowa State University IPM program began 1993: call for 75% of U.S. crop acreage grown under IPM principles (by 2000)
History • 1996: Roundup-ready® soybeans introduced in the U.S. By 2005, 87% of commercial U.S. soybean acres were Roundup-ready® varieties • In 1998 Roundup-ready® corn introduced in the U.S. • 2000s: U.S. farmers now apply over 1.2 billion pounds of pesticides annually • Today: with increasing knowledge of pests, crops, and improving technologies, field-specific management is possible
IPM What is “normal?” - Is it really a problem?
IPM • 2. What is the problem? • Proper identification is critical; that is why it is the first step. • 3. How and what does the pest attack? • Only the plant of interest affected? • Parts of plant affected? • Patterns in field? Kogan 1998
IPM • 4. How many pests are there? • Is it too early or too late to control? • Management must be at the correct time to maximize effectiveness. Daylily plants with aphids • 5. Determine an action threshold • How many pests are too many? • Economic, health, and aesthetic threshold Kogan 1998
IPM • 6. Choose appropriate management tactics • For many pests, there are several management options to consider. • 7. Review your work: • Was the management effective? • Did actions do what you wanted? • Was the method itself satisfactory? • Were there any unintended side effects? • What will be done in the future for this pest situation? Kogan 1998
Three important components • Economic injury level • Lowest population density that will cause economic damage • Economic threshold • Population size large enough to trigger an action to prevent an increasing pest population from reaching the economic injury level • General equilibrium position • Average density of a population over time Stern et al. 1959
Costs vs. Benefits of a Practice Costs • Product cost • Fuel • Labor • Marketing options • May increase crop damage from secondary pests Spider mite damage to soybean
Costs vs. Benefits of a Practice Costs • Product cost • Fuel • Labor • Marketing options • Predisposition to secondary pests Benefits • Yield (economic) • Quality (economic) • Appearance (aesthetics) • Human/livestock health • Legal issues • Acceptance of resultant commodity by end users • Ease of mind
What has changed in Iowa? • Fewer farm operators, yet the same acreage • Fewer agretailers, yet the same acreage • Increased decision-making by someone other than the grower or pesticide applicator • Rapidly emerging crop alternatives and demands (biofuels, special-purpose crops) • Increased community and regulatory pressure • Increased options (products/formulations) • Greater concern about product availability and future costs
Iowa Farm Operators # of farm operators
Average Iowa Farm Size # of acres
What hasn’t changed? • Ultimate goal of IPM: Increase responsible pesticide use. • Don’t apply when it isn’t needed • Apply effectively when it is needed • Weigh and apply alternative treatments wisely • Know what happened afterward
What hasn’t changed? • Economics is important, and always will be • Farming success is based on making a profit, and if you don’t, your operation isn’t sustainable. • Habits of growers and applicators • Change is difficult and scary. • Even inefficient practices can be comfortable – we know how they work!
What hasn’t changed? Knowledge gaps: may have changed but they still exist—and always will Example: Does spraying a fungicide on corn that has no disease symptoms produce an economic benefit?
What hasn’t changed? • Knowledge gaps:may have changed but they still exist—and always will • Yield saved by management isn’t known—you don’t know what you prevented happening! • Leaving check strips to test management effectiveness answers questions. • Observing effects if you don’t have test strips also can answer questions.
What hasn’t changed? • Knowledge gaps: may have changed but they still exist—and always will • Trust and relevance of “information sources” • What makes a good advisor good? • Can you believe everything you hear equally? • Are there ethical concerns? • Just because it is in print doesn’t make it correct.
Summary • Several factors drive decision-making on farms • Habits Aesthetics (looks) • Experience Peer pressure • Fears Time • Environment Economics • Access to information • By identifying and learning about a pest, more focus can be applied to the environmental and economic considerations